14. The King of Utravenna

Pandrea looked at the King in front of her as he spoke. She pushed herself up out of bed and swung her legs over the edge. Now that she is sitting up, she can see that one wall looks to be cut from the stone, and the rest of the rooms was brick and mortar. She began to stand up when the King spoke again.

"I hope you enjoy your visit as our guest here in Utravenna. From what I understand, you have special abilities and a special Shyft, and I am very interested in both things. My name is Aegis," the King said to Pandrea.

As he mentioned Shyfts, a blue mist came from my clothes. The vapors closed into the blue form of a woman on Pandrea's shoulder. She did not seem alarmed by the King, but she still felt wary.

"Guest? I didn't feel like the Prince was inviting me. It felt more like getting captured, and I honestly thought I would wake up behind bars in some dungeon. Sorry to talk about your son, but he is a prick," Pandrea said to the King as the walked towards the windows.

"Son? I can see why you might think so, but that runt is not my blood. In the Kingdom of Drawlgon, the nobility is not a birthright. Some kingdom change leaders from time to time, but we are different. To become noble in Drawlgon, one must only succeed. People rise from common citizens to nobles each year at the end. We hold a ceremony to reward and promote those that have achieved recognition for there contribution. Some Outstanding few are chosen as royalty, but those are picked few and far," Aegis explained to Pandrea.

She had walked to the window opening as the King spoke, but she was a little confused once she got to them. There were no windows, per se, but no wind or breeze came from the gap. Pandrea could see out the space and looked down at the city that was indeed on fire. The King walked up beside her and put his hand forward. He places it into the gap that was a window, and his hand stopped. There was some transparent barrier preventing his hand from going outside.

"Magical barriers, a key feature of our city. These are the sole reason we can live with our city here on this volcano. We use them to block the lava's heat, creating transparent domes to seal the heat away from people. Back to Valkirius, He walks a fragile line with his attitude, but no one can deny that he is one of our greatest warriors. You also have to remember that he was ordered to bring you here, his action many have been uncalled for in your eyes, but he was following orders," explained the King.

Pandrea reached forward and put her hand on the barrier. She could feel small amounts of something like electricity, but no heat. She couldn't feel any temperature coming from it. It was almost like it had not temperature. Pandrea heard the King laugh beside her when she adopted a confused look on her face.

"Where ever you're from, you don't seem that familiar with magic," Aegis asked rhetorically, cupping his jaw in the crook of his hand between thumb and index finger.

"Not exactly, I don't get how this barrier can have no temperature. Why doesn't it get cold or warm?" Pandrea asked as she pulled her hand away.

"Magic is a little tricky like that. Your normal three states of matter absorb and release heat, but think of magic as a fourth state. It cannot absorb cold or heat, but it can take on heat or cold properties when cast. This ability makes it very useful when tackling extreme elements, but enough for my magic lesson. I came here to talk about you," the King finished explaining and turned to her. Then the King asked, "can I see him?"

"Him? What are you talking about?" She asked Aegis.

"I am the one he wants to see, but I would advise against this until we know his attention. Aegis is not a stupid man, but Utreva always hungers for more power. So just be careful what you reveal to him before you know what he plans on doing with us," Calimus spoke in my mind, but then another much softer female voice said in my mind.

"I think he is an honest man. He has not lied to you, and he holds no thoughts of evil intentions toward you," The female voice of what could only be my blue Shyft spoke in my mind.

Pandrea was a bit shocked at hearing her voice for the first time.

"What is your name?" Pandrea spoke in her mind.

"Aquina," came a melodious voice in my mind. The voice was almost sing-song, and the sound of it made the tension release from my shoulders. Pandrea looked up at the King and asked.

"What are your plans for me? You say I'm a guest, but I want to see my friend and I have a place to go, " she said this a bit impatiently and regretted it, but the ing seemed to be unflappable and took no offense.

"I would like to learn about you, and I know you have a need to leave. The thing is, if "he" is who I think he is, I might send help with you," Aegis said, stepping back and spreading his arms. "But you have to trust me first."

She felt hesitant, but the way the King phrased things made her become curious. Pandrea didn't expect him to offer help. She decided to tell the King about everything that happened so far.

After her story, Calimus bleed off her as part of her shadow and then became a black wolf. The King was not surprised by this. Instead, he stepped closer to Calimus and knelt done in front of him. Aegis reached forward without a trace of fear and began to stroke Calimus's sleek black fur.

Pandrea had a momentary lapse in panic when the King did this. She half expected Calimus to growl or snap at the King. Instead, he sat down...and wagged his tail?

Pandrea's shock tripled when she has seen this. Was this the same arrogant, old, and grumpy Shyft? Aquina seemed to notice this as well and started hysterically laughing and tittering on my shoulder.

Calimus turned his head after the King had stopped and stood back up. His look shot daggers at Aquina, but this only made her giggle more. So much that she ended up falling off Pandrea's shoulder, as she fell, she became mist and then closed back into her female shape on my shoulder again. This stunt made the King smile.

"Quite the interesting water Shyft you have there, she is old and yet still has a youthful spirit," Aegis said. This comment made Aquina shake her fist at him, then stick out her tongue.

"This one on the other hand," the King said while turning back to Calimus. "Is someone I knew and was connected to someone I respected. So I will assume that this means your Greyson's daughter?"

"Greyson?" Pandrea said confusedly. She had never heard that name before, but she felt like she should know it.

"The once King of Wolfven, Greyson of the Winter Night Court. Your father would never send Such an important Shyft alone to you if you weren't. Calimus was your uncle's Shyft. I truly thought that all the Were-Shyfts had been captured, but this proves some escaped. Even if their partners did not," The King said solemnly.

Talk of my uncle seems to trigger thoughts in Calmius, and the wolf lowered his head. Calimus turned and walked back towards Pandrea and disappeared into her shadow. She felt his presence merge with her, but he stayed quiet.

Pandrea had no idea that Calimus was so close to her family. She had assumed the Shyfts to be just protective spirits that helped you. She couldn't believe they formed close bonds with there partner and be able to miss an old partner. Pandrea began to look at Calimus in a new light and made sense of his attitude and mannerisms. As the King started to speak again, she was brought out of her thoughts.

"So, your Highness, I have decided that it would be in my best interest to help you and an old friend. I cant offer you much, but I will send the Prince with you. Now, Before you throw up your hand in protest, which I can see in your eye, what you want to do. The Prince can be a little arrogant at times, but I have spoken to him. He will treat you with and your friends with proper respect, or his sister, Delphia, will remedy the situation. She will also be coming with you to do a more in-depth study of your absorption abilities," Aegis, The King of Dragons pronounced to Pandrea. She was stunned for only a second when she asked.

"Friends?"

"Yes, Form the reports, they should be here in a couple of hours according to ariel scouts. It seems that all the kingdoms that should have their finger in the pot do. My concern is about what the other two fingers are doing," the King said musingly, putting a finger to his lip as he took on a ponderous expression.

"What do you mean by what the other two are doing? I Know about Gra'Nixhas, but who or what is the sixth kingdom?" Pandrea asked.

" The other kingdom isn't talked about a lot, mostly because no one can get to the kingdom. In a sense, it is tough even to call it a kingdom because they are not in this world. We call them Expanders, only for lack of another name. They live in The Expanse, and truth be told, I expected you to be from there. It seems there are many places I do not know about," the King said regrettably.

"The Expanse? Like space? What do they look like?" She asked, now becoming more interested. Was the sixth nation a group of little green men?

"No one knows, they always come wearing shiny silver suits with refective glass masks," said a calm and melodious voice similar to Aqunia's.

The King turned and produced a warm smile at the sight of the newcomer. They both stepped forward and embraced. The new woman was older then Pandrea and maybe even a bit older than the King. She had long red hair and wore a white robe with golden flame patterns detailing everywhere on her. The most notable thing was her beauty, and she made Pandrea feel a little bit self-conscious. When they separated, the King turned and introduced his guest.

"This is Princess Dalphia, My favorite of my non-blood children," the King introduced her proudly.

"Non-blood?" Pandrea asked.

"Yes, I guess you don't know about that part. I will let Dalphia explain it to yo. As much as I would love to stay here and chat, there is much to attend to, and she will help you get comfortable," The King said, giving both Pandrea and Dalphia a nod and smile. Then he turned and left the room.

The two girls were left standing in the room, and an awkward silence burgeoned until Dalphia broke it.

"You must be exhausted after all your experiences in the last forty-eight hours. I'm sorry about Valkirius. He is thick and strong, but so is his head. Once given an order from the King, though, he is unwavering. Just give him a," but she was cut off by a roaring "what" that came from down the hall. Dalphia rolled her eye's in exasperation and left out a deep breath.

"Who was that?" Pandrea asked.

"That was Val, and it sounds like father just told him what his new task was," Dalphia said as footsteps came crashing towards Pandrea's door.